New Beginnings
by AdulterousWhore
Summary: A story to fill the three years we never saw.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! I started this Sawyer/Juliet fic a while back ... it's literally filling the 3 years that we never got to see ( though there is still season 6 i guess lol ) Anway, i wrote a story a while back called "the long con". Unfortunately i got stuck on what to write so i've decided not to carry on with that story and instead write more of this one, as i've fallen in love with it! I'd like to thank everyone who alerted/reviewed my last lost story and can only hope you'll do the same for this one :-) **

**Special Thanks go to KaydenceRei who convicned me to publish this story :-)**

She woke up early, not really caring if she'd been asleep or not. It felt like she hadn't. The sun was just creeping through the curtains in the front room of the house they had been told they could live in for two weeks. She felt out of place, and walked awkwardly around the room, not knowing what to do with herself. She had almost laughed at the irony last night, when she and James had walked back to the barracks, only to find that the house they had been given to live in was previously owned ... or rather, would be owned in thirty years by Goodwin and Harper. She couldn't decide which decade she hated it more in ... the one which represented her ability to be the other woman, or the one which represented her inability to say no to a smooth southern accent and dimples.

She looked up at the clock, which told her there would be many hours of prowling about by herself until any of the boys woke up and so she spent most of the early morning doing the obvious things, like folding away the sofa bed she'd slept on and showering. The shower ... it had been something Juliet had sorely missed when she went back to the survivors with Jack ... she made a mental note whilst shampooing her hair to never once take a shower for granted again.

She wrapped a fluffy white towel around herself and padded back through the house, pulling her clothes out of the dryer. They were still warm when she put them on, which made her smile. She noticed a small book shelf sitting by the sofa as she pulled her hair into a pony tail and found herself grinning when she noticed a brand new edition of Carrie inside. Juliet relaxed back on the sofa, smiling still, and feeling like finally there was something normal in her life. She reached for the book, which was so new it creaked slightly as she opened it, and got lost in the story once again.

-

He almost forgot it ever happened. There was one brief second, in the time between dreaming and reality that he forgot where they were, and even as he became more conscious, more aware, there was a small part of him that prayed he would wake up and she would be right next to him. But when he opened his eyes, there was nothing, it was 1974 and Kate was ... Kate was somewhere he would probably never get to. Sawyer couldn't help but feel disappointed. The living room was silent as he walked towards it, and he figured Juliet was probably still asleep.

"Hey ..." She said quietly from the sofa, catching his attention. She looked ... better, was the only word he could think of. The pony tail she was wearing was letting half of her long hair fall out her one shoulder, her vest and pants were back to their original colour and her skin looked fresher. A book was sitting in her lap. "Did you sleep okay?" She smiled.

He nodded. "Yeah ... okay ... nice to sleep in a bed again ..." She chuckled. "What you reading?" He asked, moving over to sit on the chair beside her. Juliet lifted the book so he could see. "Carrie? What is that anyway? About a chick that kills all her damn high school friends just cause she got laughed at, at prom?"

"In a nutshell? Erm ... yeah ... that's it." She laughed, closing the book and putting it back.

"How long you been awake?" He asked, getting up to make coffee.

"A couple of hours ... I didn't sleep very well." She admitted.

"You didn't? Was it the couch? I told you I'd take that ..."

"No ... no it wasn't the couch, James."

"Then what?"

She hesitated. "It was ... me. Questioning my choice to stay ..." she looked into her lap as her voice quietened, "questioning my entire life ..."

He heard her last comment, though Sawyer was unsure whether to address it or not. Instead, he stayed silent until he was back in the chair with a coffee for both of them. She muttered a word of thanks and sank back into the sofa. "You did the right thing, Jules." She looked at him, eyebrow raised. "By staying, I mean. Now you ... now you have a chance to get back to ... whatever it is you have back home in our time." He strung his sentence together as best he could, only then realising he knew absolutely nothing about her. A small, hopeless sort of smile appeared on her face.

"Whatever I have back home in our time I gave up thinking I'd get back to a long time ago." The smile had gone from her face, and Sawyer looked at her intensely. He was so curious about her ...

A knock at the door stopped him from asking her about what she had back home. "Good morning ... Juliet, isn't it?" Horace asked as Juliet opened the door for him to come in.

"Yeah ... morning, Horace."

"Jim ..." Horace nodded towards Sawyer.

"Hey Boss."

"I have some clothes for you all here ..." he passed a box over to Juliet, "did you sleep okay?"

"Yeah, fine ..." All three looked in the direction of the bedrooms when a loud snore came out of nowhere. Juliet laughed. "Except for Miles excessive snoring, we slept fine." Horace smiled.

"I just wanted to come and ask you a bit about your crew ... the more we know, who they are, what they look like ... the easier it'll be to find them ... and then if any of us are out of the compound without you, we should know who to look out for." Juliet shot a sharp look at Sawyer, who suddenly looked far more awake than he had done thirty seconds ago. "I've ordered all of my people not to kill anybody they might find. Instead, they'll be shocked and brought down here into our security station. Obviously, we don't want to hurt any of your crew but ... the hostiles ... we can't take any chances, especially not when it comes to strangers. Hence the way Amy got you into the Barracks."

"How is she?" Juliet asked suddenly, trying any way possible to stall Horace from his inevitable questions. "Amy ... I mean."

"She's ..." Horace hesitated, "... she's okay, all things considered, I guess."

"Look, Horace ... could we wait 'til later today to talk about all this? I want the others to know what's goin' on with the situation ..." Sawyer nodded towards the bedrooms as he stood up.

"Sure man, we can do it later ..." Horace smiled warmly and moved towards the door.

"Thanks ... for the clothes and ... everything." Sawyer said politely, his voice growling. He moved around the back of Juliet to open the door, placing his hand on the small of her back as he did. If she reacted he didn't notice, but it was his way of silently letting her know it would be okay.

Juliet and Sawyer spent the rest of the morning figuring out their entire story; so much so that by the time Miles and Jin woke up they almost believed the con themselves. They had decided on names, places, reasons, back stories ... Juliet had asked him why he was putting so much into it all, and he had answered with a simple, "It's all in the detail, Jules." Sawyer was going over everything with Miles and attempting to tell Jin as Juliet made them all some lunch.

"Is Daniel awake?" She asked Miles, who had been sleeping in the same room.

"I don't know ... I don't think he slept at all to be honest." Juliet nodded and proceeded down to their bedroom with some food. She knocked slowly.

"Daniel?" The door creaked as she pushed it open. Daniel was lying on his back, staring up at the ceiling, his eyes wet with tears. "Hey ... I brought you some lunch ..." She sat on the edge of the bed with the plate in her hands.

"Thanks Juliet." He said quietly, not taking his eyes from the ceiling.

"How are you feeling?"

"Okay."

"Do you want to talk about it? About her?" Daniel shook his head in response, but a fresh load of tears welled up in his eyes. Juliet was so sorry for him. "You really need to eat something ... I'm not a bad cook ... I promise." She smiled a small smile as she lifted the plate higher. Daniel looked at her, sitting up slowly, he took the plate from her. "Horace brought by some clothes for us all earlier ... they're in the front room if you want to change?" She suggested, trying to find a way she could take his mind off Charlotte, impossible as it seemed.

"Thanks." He muttered, biting into the sandwich she had made.

"Sawyer and I have been working on our story all morning ... he's just telling Miles and Jin now ... we can fill you in later though, if you don't feel up to coming out."

Again, Daniel did nothing but nod in response. "I'm so sorry, Daniel." She said finally, tears threatening in her own eyes.

"Why are you sorry?" He asked quietly, suddenly looking up at her.

"Because ... I know how it feels to lose someone that you love." She got up and moved towards to the door. "You should come out when you're ready ..." She closed the door behind her with a click and took a short pause to compose herself before going back into the front room.

-

The following few days seemed to go by without any hitches. Juliet tried to keep Daniel occupied and found he was happiest when he talked about anything to do with science, so she often asked him questions about his work. Sawyer and Miles were out everyday looking for the rest of their camp, accompanied by some of the dharma security, and Jin just kept himself to himself. Juliet often caught him looking down at the hand his wedding ring had once laid.

On their fifth night in Dharmaville, as Sawyer had branded it, all five of them were surrounding the coffee table in the front room playing a friendly game of poker. Juliet and Jin had made the dinner, Miles had gotten the beer and Sawyer had managed to drag Daniel out of his room for more than an hour to play with them. It became apparent to all of them as the night wore on that this had been the most fun they'd had in weeks.

"She's bluffing, man." Miles said, smirking at Juliet as Jin appeared unsure whether to bow out of the game or not. She smirked back, raising her perfectly plucked eyebrow.

"Am I?" Sawyer bit back a bark of laughter at her reaction, Miles faltered slightly.

"I'm out." Jin said finally, throwing his cards down. Juliet chuckled as Miles groaned.

"So ... Miles, you willing to waste another buck?" Miles pressed his lips together, glancing between Juliet and the cards in his hands. He sighed heavily and threw them down at the table as Juliet's face lit up with a happy smile. "Wow," she said catching what his cards were, "you should have stayed in ... 'cause you were right, you know. I did have crappy cards."

They started to laugh at Miles who seemed close to tearing his hair out. Juliet hadn't been beaten all night and Sawyer couldn't do anything to pretend he wasn't impressed. "Are we playin' again or not?"

"Yes! I'm not stopping until I win one of these." Miles said, causing Sawyer to sigh at Juliet.

"It's gonna be a loooong night." She returned his grin as she dealt the cards.

-

He had been right. It was a long night. It was now pushing 1AM and everyone bar Sawyer and Juliet had retired to bed. She was washing up as he brought through the plates and glasses, placing them on the counter quietly.

"You're a con man ..." She stated rather suddenly, causing him to frown slightly.

"So ..."

"So ... how is it you _suck_ at poker?" She smirked, but he never got time to answer.

The front door opened suddenly. Out of instinct, Sawyer turned his body to guard Juliet from whoever was barging in. It was Horace, followed by three men neither had met before.

"Jim ... I'm sorry I know it's late but ... we think we've found one of your people."

-

She was trying to catch his eye, but every time she looked over at him his eyes were fixed to the window of the van they were sitting in. Everyone was silent. Horace was taking them to where they had found a man's body in the jungle; he had told them that they thought the hostiles may have found him before his men had. She waited only a few more minutes but eventually she couldn't take it anymore. She had to know what he was going to do, and so she looked over at the two security men sitting in front of her with guns by their sides and smiled slightly, sliding over the seat towards him. He looked at her then, confused as to what she was doing as she bumped her shoulder against his. She threw a quick glance at the men and took hold of his hand. Again, he frowned down at her, looking at their hands intertwined, Sawyer was utterly confused as to what she was doing, but she looked visibly upset, so he didn't take his hand away.

Juliet squeezed his hand, trying to find a way of saying something to him without looking strange. She made herself look upset, thinking maybe if she did he would hug her for comfort.

"It'll be okay, Jules." He growled, still frowning at her. She could tell he was confused, but was glad when he pulled her into a hug. She took the moment to whisper in his ear.

"Don't let go of me." She started, forcefully, "What if it's Locke?"

It hit Sawyer then what she had been trying to do. He held onto her, throwing a hard stare at the men in the van. He turned his head slightly; to anyone but the two of them he was simply burying his face in her hair. "Stick to the plan ... just leave it to me, I'll think of something to say." He let go as they slowed down, giving her a reassuring nod. She still looked upset, but Sawyer knew it was all an act. If he didn't know any better he'd say she was just as good a liar as he was. But he was a con man, and as good as her poker face was, he was better at pulling the lies from thin air.

But it wasn't Locke. Sawyer sighed heavily when Horace finally revealed the body to them. "Yeah ... yeah he's one of us ... his name's Sc-"

"Steve." Juliet injected quickly, knowing he was about to call him Scott. "His name was Steve." Sawyer frowned slightly but then realised she was right. He nodded. They had later concluded that the rest of their camp _had _to be in the 70's with them, or else how would Steve had got to where he had? Juliet looked over at James, almost willing him to say anything, but he didn't. Instead she watched as the look in his eyes changed slightly. She knew he was vowing never to give up on them, never to lose faith or hope ... and it was in that moment she suddenly felt guilty for nearly leaving.

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	2. Chapter 2

**Hope you like the next chapter! Thank you all who reviewed/alerted this story ... it made my day! **

They had been in Dharmaville for 11 days and Sawyer could hand on heart say he was struggling to think of a reason to convince Horace to let them stay on the island. Finding Steve had given him a new strand of hope he wasn't letting go of anytime soon ... they had people to find, and he wasn't going anywhere until he had found them. And then there was Juliet ... she hadn't said a single word about the sub since he had convinced her to stay, but he knew it was at the front of her mind constantly. Every now and then he would catch her with a far off look in her eye and want to know what she was thinking ... but he would never ask. He found just the mere thought of asking her embarrassing enough without actually having to ask her anything about her feelings as it was. He was watching her as she read Carrie, her legs stretched out in front of her on the sofa, engrossed in the words but he was positive she hadn't turned the page for at least 5 minutes.

"Why are you watching me, James?" She said suddenly, not moving her eyes from the page. It caught him off guard ...

"What? I ain't watchin' you."

"Yes you are. You're doing the exact same thing you've been doing for days now only you've been dodging the subject because you're too scared of my answer to bring it up ... if you want to know what I'm thinking all you have to do is ask me." She looked up then, raising her eyebrow and turning her head slightly to the left. He paused for a moment, not taking his eyes from hers.

"Alright ... what're you thinkin'?"

"There, see? Now that wasn't all that scary, was it?" She quipped back, smirking slightly.

"Well now who's dodging?" He remarked, causing her to shut the book and drop it on the counter before them.

"I'm not dodging anything. I'm not answering you because you already know exactly what I'm thinking."

"Oh I do, do I?"

"Yes, you do. You know because you've been thinking exactly the same thing." It was that remark which shut him up. She was right, of course ...

"Yeah well I guess neither of us should waste time worryin' 'bout what'll go down when that sub floats back up to the surface in 3 days ..." He said eventually.

"Why's that?"

"Because If I can't convince Horace to let us stay it looks like I'll be on it with you." She merely looked at him, a hint of pity in her eyes.

"Can I ask you a question?" She said after a short while.

"Shoot."

"Why ... why did you want to stay on the island?"

"Because I can't just leave them here ... I know I ain't exactly a saint but they're my friends."

"No ... no, I get why you won't leave now ... but ... when Daniel and Naomi first showed up ... why did you with Locke?" It had been something Juliet had been particularly curious about for some time now. He was quiet for a short while before answering her.

"Because I didn't have a single thing to go back to." He cleared his throat before continuing, not once meeting her eyes. "I'm not a good person, Juliet. Trust me when I say they're ain't a soul on this earth who'd have missed me when we crashed."

The silence which fell between them was comfortable, and for a long while each was lost in their own thoughts.

"You don't have to be a good person to have a good heart." Juliet said rather out of the blue. "You have a good heart, James." She smiled warmly, getting up and moving towards the front door.

"Where're you off too?" He enquired.

"Olivia invited me over for coffee."

"You know we are in the 70's ... so you don't have to act like a fully fledged 50's housewife." He grinned as she giggled, pulling the door open and rolling her eyes.

"I'll see you later."

-

"Olivia?" Juliet called, pushing the front door, which was already ajar, open.

"Hey! Come on in! Sorry about ... all the boxes." The blonde before her laughed slightly, kicking a large box aside.

"Wow... you having a yard sale?" Juliet asked, marvelling at all the boxes. Olivia faltered for a second before answering.

"No ... no, I'm not having a yard sale. I'm leaving."

"What?"

"Getting on the next sub ..."

"You and Horace are ... going? Off the Island?"

"Not Horace ... just me." A sad smile came about her face, and Juliet felt her heart go out to her. "It's fine ... we've both known for a long time it wasn't working out ..." Juliet nodded, knowing exactly what that felt like. "We're still friends but ... he doesn't make me laugh the way he used to." Olivia shook her head slightly, and then let the warm smile appear back on her face. "You want that coffee?" Juliet's eyes followed her into the kitchen.

"I used to be married ..."

"You did?"

"Yeah ... long time ago now but ... all the same."

"What happened?" They were sitting down by this point.

"He ..." Juliet started, unsure of how to word the rest of what she wanted to say. "... was a powerful man. I think that's what attracted me to him in the first place. Anyway, I certainly wasn't the only person attracted to him and he had a wandering eye."

"Oh my god ... he cheated on you?"

"Oh yeah ... and I ignored it, the first few thousand times. Kept telling myself it was just sex but ... one day my sister called me sobbing her heart out ... said he'd made a pass at her. I left him that night." Juliet went silent, drinking the coffee in her hand. It was then a stroke of brilliance hit her ... it was a long shot, but it was still a chance. "If I can give you any advice it's not to linger in the past. I did ... for much too long. It's good to stay friends with him, if you can."

"Oh I will ... I do still love him, god knows ... but ... we're not the same people."

"I get that. Olivia can I ask you for a favour?"

"Sure, of course."

Juliet took a deep breath in, putting the mug down on the table and locking her eyes on Olivia. "James ... is a complex guy. He's a good captain, isn't afraid to pad about any situation really ... and though you'll never get him to admit it, he cares a lot about our crew." Olivia frowned, apparently unsure of where Juliet was heading. "He's sitting at ours right now trying to think of _any_ way that he can convince Horace to let us stay. He gets that we can't stay here because you have rules ... and he's not an idiot, contrary to how he acts most of the time. He gets that they might not be alive ... but ... he can't, we can't just leave without knowing. So ... I'm asking you ... as a personal favour to me ... would you please talk to Horace? Try to convince him that we can stay?"

-

It was much later that Juliet found out that her 'favour' had worked. She was sitting, wrapped in a blanket on the sofa. The others had since retired to bed and she was just reaching the end of 'Carrie' when the door knocked. Sawyer's door opened with a yank as she reached for the handle.

"Who is it?" He asked, his voice raspy from the tiredness he so obviously felt. She opened the door curiously as he came up right behind her. It was Horace. Sawyer sighed outwardly.

"Hey Jim, Juliet ... I'm sorry I'm calling round late, were you asleep?" Juliet shook her head politely as Sawyer answered.

"I _was_. Now you wanna hurry this up before my sheets go cold?"

"Sorry. I just ... wanted to tell you that we've had a vote ... and my people all agree that it wouldn't be a bad thing if you stayed. I know that you want to find your people, and we won't stop you from doing that ... but if you do stay, it's under conditions." Juliet chanced a look over at Sawyer and had to bite back her grin. He looked truly stunned. Horace continued. "We're short of a few people around this place, so digging in with the rest of us is the only way it's going to work. Does that sound okay to you?"

Sawyer's head nodded slightly. Juliet let out a laugh. "I think that's a yes." Her voice snapped him out of his shock, he cleared his throat.

"Yeah ... yeah, thanks Boss."

"Alright ... well we'll sort out all the details tomorrow ... get some rest." He gave Juliet a knowing look, causing her to quickly break eye contact and stare towards the ground. Sawyer frowned at her. Horace turned back to them suddenly, with a smile on his face. "Oh ... I almost forgot ... Welcome to the Dharma Initiative." They stood in silence, watching him walk away. Simultaneously they both leant against either side of the door frame. Sawyer shot a glance over at Juliet, a slight smirk on his face.

"I wonder what made him change his mind." Juliet looked back at him, an innocent look on her face. She pouted her lip and shook her head.

"Who knows ..." She folded her arms and stared down towards her feet, trying so hard to act idle. It was then Sawyer really let himself smile. He had no idea what she had done ... but whatever it was, he was eternally grateful. He was about to thank her when he noticed her clothes ... or rather, her pyjama's. She was wearing a Geronimo Jackson tee shirt with some checked boxers. He frowned, turning his body in towards her.

"What the hell are you wearing?" This time she really did look surprised, but smiled, tugging at the baggy tee.

"Oh ... they're Daniel's."

"Dan's?" He was dumbstruck for a second. "Damn ... first Red, now you. What is it about the geeks?" Juliet laughed.

"It isn't like that ... I didn't have anything to wear to sleep in so he offered me these, they were in the box of stuff Horace gave us but he didn't need them so ..."

"What, that box didn't have any jimmy's for you?" He raised an eyebrow, causing her to look at him sceptically.

"Yeah it did, but there is no way on heaven or earth I'd wear the nightgown that was in there. Especially not in front of the most sarcastic person on this island." She nodded towards him. He feigned hurt as she wandered back into the lounge. He shut the door behind them with a click.

"So why did you ask Dan? I would have given you something." He said, rather defensively.

She snorted as she pulled the blanket over her legs. "Without the mocking and sarcasm?" He shook his head and padded back down the hallway. She smiled to herself. "Good night James!" She shouted, waiting for his reply. It never came. She rolled her eyes at his stubbornness and switched off the lamp beside her, sliding down the sofa in the darkness.

"Good night Juliet!" He shouted back after a minute. She felt the smile spread wider and let herself drift into a deep sleep.

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	3. Chapter 3

**Here's the next chapter! I really hope you all like it ... thanks again for all the reviews - they really do inspire me to write more! :-)**

The next day he woke up early, much earlier than he had wanted to. Sawyer sighed heavily; once again she had filled his dreams. The ever mounting worry was why he never really let himself fall in love ... Cassidy had been the exception and he'd even screwed her over. He shook his head slightly, and though the image of her shuddered, it didn't go away.

Juliet was still fast asleep when he went into the front room. He didn't open the curtains in case he woke her. Silently, he moved over to the kitchen, being careful not to make a sound as he went about his usual morning routine.

"What time is it?" Sawyer turned quickly. Juliet was rubbing her eyes as she sat up. He sighed to himself.

"Sorry I didn't mean to wake you."

"You didn't." He looked at her sceptically. "Okay ... you _did_ but I don't mind." She smiled, but he didn't return it, and went about making coffee for them both. Juliet frowned. "Are you okay?" She asked it loudly enough but got no answer. "James?" She said, but still nothing. His back was turned towards her as he waited for the kettle to boil. "Sawyer?" She said, with more force this time.

"I'm fine." He sighed. She thought better than to press his already temperamental mood, so just nodded and got up from the sofa. She watched him carefully as she went about making their breakfast. It had become a silent routine of theirs, him making their coffee and her making their breakfast each morning. It was only when they sat down at the table did he finally speak.

"Do you think they're dead?" The question caught her off guard, and all of a sudden it was obvious to her this question was meant about Kate. It had clearly been on his mind all night.

"Honestly?" He nodded after a short pause. Did he really, truly want to know what she thought? "Honestly ... I don't know." Juliet knew it wasn't the answer he had wanted. "What do you think?" She threw the question back. He looked up from his toast.

"I don't know either. I hope not." Again, Sawyer let his eyes meet the untouched toast before him.

"I believe that ... if you love someone you have a sense about them ... a connection, a feeling." Juliet started, knowing this would be the only way to make him feel better, even if it did mean putting herself out there. "So if they're dead ... the connection would break. I think you'd know it. Maybe the fact either of us are questioning logic is a good thing. It means the connection hasn't broken." Juliet wasn't looking at him, and instead playing with her food. Sawyer knew she was probably only saying it for his benefit, but it had made him feel better all the same. "I guess the question isn't if you think she's dead ... but if you can still feel her?" She didn't expect him to answer, but she was surprised with what he did say.

"Can you still feel Jack?" His voice was quiet, and he didn't meet her eyes.

Juliet felt her eyes soften a little. She nodded before she spoke, almost unable to get the words out. "Yeah ..." She cleared her throat. "... yeah I can." She didn't quite know if she believed it herself, but somewhere inside her head told her that James needed her to say what she had.

-

Juliet snapped her head up as the front door opened. "James?" She called, to no answer. She frowned slightly and pulled the rubber gloves she was wearing off. Miles came around the corner as she began to get up off the floor. Juliet sighed. "Oh ... it's you."

"What are you doing?" He asked, frowning.

"I live with 4 boys, Miles. My hope you'd all help with the cleaning wore off a week ago." She replied, her eye brow raised. He looked quite ashamed all of a sudden.

"Sorry."

"It's okay ... where is everyone?"

"Getting enrolled ..." A look was exchanged between them as she brushed past him into the kitchen, putting the cleaning things back under the skin. "I think we all thought you would come ..."

"Why would I come, Miles? I'm going home in 2 days."

"Are you?" Juliet turned to look at him, her back leaning against the counter. "You're not gonna be going back to whatever you left in the first place ... it's 1974!" He said, a little force in his voice.

"Why do people keep telling me that? I _know_ that it's 1974! And you don't have to keep reminding me that I'm not going home because I've made my peace with the fact that I'm _never_ going home, Miles!" She looked towards the ground, and it was only then that Juliet realised she had made the distance between them smaller. She stepped back. "It's not about going home anymore."

"Then what's it about?"

"I have been trying to get off this island for three years ... I don't care where I'm going ... it's enough that it'll take me as far away from here as possible."

"I don't get it, Juliet. The reason you hate this place so much is because it kept you from getting home, right?" She said nothing. "So if you know now that there isn't a home to go to ... why are you gonna leave?! Staying here is the only way you're ever gonna _get_ home!"

"Did Sawyer put you up to this?" Miles frowned at her question.

"What?"

"You heard me. You haven't given the fact that I'm leaving two thoughts up until today. James is the one who asked me to stay. Why all of a sudden are you so interested?!" Miles went quiet and looked towards the floor. Juliet relaxed her weight back onto one leg. "Unbelievable. Where is he?" Miles sighed.

"In the processing room." Juliet didn't wait for the rest of Miles sentence as she stormed out of the house. Who the hell did he think he was? Getting Miles to talk to her when he'd already made her stay an extra two weeks?! She yanked the door open to the processing room, it slammed behind her with a loud bang, causing Horace, Jin, Daniel and finally Sawyer all to whip round. They all looked confused, except for James, who didn't meet her eyes.

"Sorry to interrupt. James ... can I talk to you in private for a few minutes?" She said in a cold voice. He sighed as Horace nodded, and got up slowly. They were both silent until they were back outside. The sun was strong, and warmed the back of Juliet's neck. They carried on walking along the path until finally she turned on him. "Why do you want me to stay?" She asked a force in her voice.

"What?"

"_Why_ do you want me to stay? I've been going over it and over it in my head for days now, James, and I can't for the life of me think why you want me to stay on this island! What possible reason must you have?" She stopped talking as someone walked passed them in earshot. She threw her head around, making sure no one else could hear. "And to bring Miles into it?! What do I have to do to get it through your head that I am _not_ staying in this place a second longer than I have to?! I can't do it anymore, I can't be here anymore. I don't want to be and it's not fair you for to ask me to stay ... not when you don't have a good reason to." The tears she had managed to hold back came to the rim of her eyes, but still she didn't let them fall.

"Are you done?" He growled. She nodded slightly. All he could do was look at her, a deep frown on his face. She was trying to search his eyes, but couldn't figure out what he was thinking. He turned on his heel and walked back to the processing room. She closed her eyes, begging inside to pull herself together.

-

Tension filled the house over the next two days. Both Juliet and Sawyer were perfectly polite to one another ... but only if they had to be. If neither was required to talk to the other, they wouldn't. It was something Miles, Jin and Daniel all picked up on, but knew if they attempted to talk about the situation at hand they'd get yelled at.

Sawyer still didn't want her to go, but he couldn't tell her why. He couldn't bring himself to say the three words he knew he needed to if she actually were to stay on this rock: _I need you._

The morning that the sub was to set off again, Juliet woke early. She had packed all the clothes Horace had given her the night before, in a little suitcase and left it stood up by the door. She went about the house in silence, washing up the mug she had drank her coffee from and the plate she had eaten her toast off. She folded the blankets she slept in carefully, and placed them gently back on the couch. On top, she smoothed out the creases left in the tee shirt and boxers Daniel had given her. When she looked around, it was almost as if she hadn't even been there in the first place.

A door creaked open, Juliet looked up to see Jin coming out of his and Sawyer's room. She smiled at him in a sad sort of way. "Morning ..."

"Good morning ... are you ... going?" He said slowly. She nodded.

"Yeah ... the sub leaves in half an hour." She pointed towards the clock, and where its hands would be in half an hour's time. He nodded, showing her he understood.

"I shall ... wake Sawyer?"

"No." Juliet said without hesitation, causing Jin to frown. She smiled quickly. "No ... It's okay ... he ... we err ... we said goodbye. Already." An awkward sort of silence fell between the pair. Juliet moved towards the window to see Olivia and Horace walking towards the dock. She sighed sadly. "Okay ... I'd better get going." She smiled back at Jin as she took hold of the handle of her suitcase. She was surprised when Jin pulled her into a friendly hug.

"Thank you ... for helping ... Sun." He smiled warmly at her and held the door open.

"Bye Jin ... good luck here ..." It was a strange exchange of words for the two people to have, but Juliet was glad she had managed to say goodbye to at least one of them. Though maybe it was better this way, she wandered, dragging her suitcase behind her through the barracks as she made her way towards the dock. It was early but already the sun was high in the sky.

"Hey Juliet ... you decided on leaving then ..." Horace said as he greeted her. Juliet looked towards the sub uncertainly, but then nodded at him. He reached down for her suitcase but let go of the handle when someone called his name from inside the submarine.

"Hey Horace! We got a problem!" A worrying feeling bubbled up in Juliet's stomach at the man's words. Horace hurried down into the sub. Juliet edged towards the water, almost daring herself to look down to see what was happening. "Well how in the hell did that happen?!" She heard Horace shout in an angry voice as he came back up the ladder. He brushed passed her quickly, followed by the same man who had noticed whatever problem it was they appeared to have.

"Horace ... what's going on?" She asked. He stopped and turned back to her, shooting a quick glance at the man just behind him.

"Nothing, Juliet. Everything's fine ... we just have a bit of a situation." With that, he turned from her, looking towards the group of people to whom it was obvious something was wrong. "Can somebody call Radzinsky? Tell him we're at condition 6 ... NOW!"

It was as if a switch had been flipped. The cheerfulness in which these people felt most days had gone; it had been replaced with something Juliet could only pinpoint as determination. She looked around, utterly bewildered as people dropped their luggage and jetted off in all directions. Some moved straight down into the sub, other ran off back in the direction of the barracks. It was pure pandemonium, and nothing but confusion filled Juliet. Olivia ran towards the submarine; Juliet caught hold of her arm.

"What the hell is going on?!" She demanded. Olivia looked desperately at the sub and almost tugged her arm from Juliet. She didn't, and instead sighed.

"We're at condition 6 Juliet ... something's wrong with the submarine ..."

"What? What's wrong with it?"

"We don't know yet ... please, I have to get on it ..." Olivia begged. Juliet gripped her arm tighter.

"Horace called for someone called Radzinsky ... who's that?"

"He works in the Flame. The communications station Juliet ... if we can't get the sub working Radzinsky needs to know so he can call in Ann Arbor."

"I don't get it, why are you all so panicked?"

Olivia hesitated once more before talking. "Because ... if we don't get that sub working ... we're stuck here."

-

An hour had gone by, and it seemed the panic had started to calm. Juliet had long since resigned herself to the fact she couldn't help ... and so she had sat on the dock propped up by her elbows, and had waited.

Apparently James had yet to hear about what had happened ... either that or he really was too stubborn to come down and say goodbye to her. People had been coming by the sub all morning, many of which Juliet had never seen before, and would never see again.

If she got on the sub.

She sighed, once again questioning whether or not to stay on the island. Something Ben had said to her once swirled around her brain for what seemed like the thousandth time.

_If the island doesn't want you to leave ... it won't let you._

Maybe this was what had caused condition 6? Juliet almost snorted at the idea she was actually contemplating that an _island_ had caused a submarine to stop working so that it could keep her here. But, she argued, they were in 1974. So maybe the island wanting anything was as absurd as it sounded. There was a small voice in her head saying if she just didn't get on the sub everyone who wanted to go home to the mainland would be able to ... perhaps it really was her who was keeping Olivia from getting on with her life? She shook her head slightly, hoping maybe if she did her thoughts would disappear. They didn't.

She sat for a short while, weighing up the pros and cons of staying ... she'd be on the island ... con, she grimaced. She'd be able to help find the rest of the camp ... pro. She'd be here if Locke ever came back ... pro. She'd be here if they ever found a way to get back to 2004 ... definite pro. Juliet looked hesitantly over to the submarine, and it was as though something in her mind just switched.

"Juliet?!" Horace called, suddenly. She looked up to see him smiling, standing half in the submarine on the ladder. "You ready to go home?!"

She very nearly laughed at the situation. She shook her head. "Horace?" She called, he frowned and climbed out of the sub, making his way towards her.

"Something wrong?"

"Can I stay?" She said, not beating about the bush. He looked surprised, but didn't question her.

"Yes, of course you can stay, if that's what you really want." All Juliet could do was nod. Was it what she _really_ wanted? She had no idea. But in that moment, she knew she couldn't leave. Even if she tried, the island wouldn't let her, and she had no right to keep the people who had the chance of getting on a sub that would work perfectly well without her on it, from going home if they could.

-

It was the first time in their two weeks in Dharmaville that Sawyer woke from a dreamless sleep. One which hadn't been plagued by images of Kate flashing through his mind, and he had to say, he felt better for it. The sun was seeping through the curtains in his room, which he sat alone in. Jin must already be awake, he thought. He went out into the lounge. Everybody was sitting around the table; Sawyer could sense something wasn't right. His eyes shot towards the couch, where they were met with the folded blankets and pyjama's Juliet had left there early that morning. It was only then that it hit him today was the morning that the sub would leave. He snapped his head towards the others.

"Where is she?!"

"She's gone, man. You missed her. We all did." Miles answered.

"What?!"

"She told me ... not to wake you." Jin said. Sawyer stood back. She had gone ... she had gone and she hadn't said goodbye to him. He glanced up at the clock. It was nearly noon ... she would be long gone by now. It was so odd to him ... to feel a great loss for something he couldn't say he had in the first place. He certainly didn't know her ... not really. And if someone had said to him 4 weeks ago he would one day call her a friend, he would have laughed in their face.

He went about the rest of his usual morning routine in silence; and without her. It was mid afternoon when he finally emerged from their house, and Sawyer let himself wander down to the docks.

It was deserted. He threw his head back and sighed. Had he really expected the sub to still be here? His hands immediately went to his hips as she shook his head, looking down towards his feet. "When did you leave?" He said to himself quietly.

"The sub left about an hour ago." A voice startled him. His head shot to his left, where none other than Juliet was leaning back on her elbows staring out into the water which her feet were dangling in. How could he have even missed her sitting there? He wondered. He felt a sure smile spring onto his face as nothing but relief filled his chest.

"Thought you weren't gonna stay in this place a second longer than you had to?" He smirked as he joined her, taking off his boots and socks and dropping his legs into the water with hers. Her head tilted to its side as she squinted in the sunlight. She reasoned for a second.

"Yeah well ... who'd make your breakfast if I left?" She smiled then, splashing her feet about the water. Sawyer let out a laugh.

"Well I did just fine this morning on my own ..." As he said it his stomach gave a loud growl. He fixed his eyes just to his left and kept them there for a moment before he let himself laugh slightly. He closed his eyes and shook his head, but the smile didn't leave his face. "... obviously not."

It was at that Juliet let herself laugh. She sat up and bumped her shoulder against his.

"I'm glad you didn't go, Juliet." He said, still smiling slightly. She gave him a warm smile back.

"Me too, James."

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	4. Chapter 4

**Thanks so much for all the reviews! I really hope you all like this next bit! :)**

It was the next afternoon that Sawyer went down to the processing room with Juliet to get her enrolled. She looked around the deserted room with her arms folded as James came up behind her.

"You wanna go over this again?" Juliet rolled her eyes.

"I think I got it the seven hundredth time you got me to repeat it, James," she sat down at the desk as Horace entered the room at ease.

"Alright Jules," he started, sitting in front of her. Sawyer pulled up a chair beside her. Horace raised his eyebrows. "Can I help you, Jim?"

"It's fine Horace, I don't mind James being here," Juliet smiled. Horace frowned slightly.

"That's great, Juliet ... but I think Harry wanted to show you, Jin and Miles the ropes in security today, Jim." Sawyer shot a forceful look at Juliet; she nodded, silently telling him she'd be fine. He nodded back towards her and made for the door. Juliet smiled back at Horace once James had gone.

"Okay ... I'm just gonna go through a series of questions to enroll you and then we'll fit you in somewhere." Juliet edged forward on her seat slightly, as though she was preparing herself for anything he had to ask her. "Okay ... your full name?"

"Juliet Burke ..."Horace nodded as he wrote it down. It was just then the door to the processing room swung open. Juliet looked back to see a janitor walk through dragging a cleaning trolley behind him. His hair was fairish, and long, she was just about to look back at Horace when she caught the name on his chest. _Roger Linus_.

She felt the air leave her body all at once. "Linus," she whispered in alarm. That was no coincidence, surely? Somewhere briefly in the distance it seemed, Horace asked another question.

"Date of birth?" Juliet didn't once take her eyes from the name on Roger's chest and answered without even thinking.

"March 27th 1970 ..."

"What?" She snapped her head back, suddenly realising what she'd just said. Horace looked up at her, utterly confused.

"What?"

"You said 1970 ..."

"I did? I did! Sorry ... I meant 40 ... I meant to say 1940." She pressed her lips together and refused to meet Horace's eyes. He frowned but continued to write all the same; Juliet sighed a silent breath of relief as he did so, silently cursing herself. She looked back round, but Roger had gone.

"Okay ... your occupation?" Again the question was simple, but it was still something Juliet faltered on.

"I was a doctor," she said finally. Horace looked impressed.

"Wow, okay ... is that what you were doing on the boat? You were their doctor?"

Juliet cleared her throat, brushing a stray strand of hair from her face. "Erm no ... I was on there because my boyfriend was." The lie slipped out from her mouth with ease. Horace looked surprised.

"Your boyfriend was?" Juliet nodded. "Oh ..." He saw a frown appear on her face and shook his head slightly. "Sorry I just thought ... you and Jim ..."

It was her turn to be surprised. Why on earth would Horace think that? She thought back then to whenever Horace had seen her, and realised that Sawyer had been with her every time. They had answered the door together both nights he had dropped round late, as a matter of fact, now that she sat and thought about it, she hadn't spent a day apart from him since they had gotten there 2 weeks prior. She shook her head at Horace.

"We found Goodwin's body just after we crashed." Sawyer had said they would say her boyfriend was Jack, but she refused. She told him if it was ever brought up, she would tell them that the man she was with had been called Goodwin. Sawyer hadn't asked her why she had chosen that name, but Juliet knew he was curious about it. There had been a simple reason for it; if she told people Goodwin was found dead on the shore it didn't feel like so much of a lie. Horace gave her a simple nod, deciding not to press the situation. Another reason for that name; she wouldn't have to pretend to look upset when she thought about him, the tears came to the brim of her eyes without force.

"Where are you from?"

"Miami."

"Okay ... that's about all I really need from you ... if you can just sign this, here, and I'll put an order in for your lab coat-"

"Erh, Horace?" Juliet interrupted, as an idea popped into her head. He raised his head slightly, showing his acknowledgment. "I don't want a lab coat ... I _was _a doctor ... I'm not anymore." She smiled at him.

"Why?" He frowned.

"Because when I was little I wanted to save lives ... create new lives. And I did ... I was one of the best fertility doctors on the east coast. So much so that the impossible cases were coming to me and in the end I lost a lot more than I saved. I _was_ a doctor. But I can't be ... not anymore." Horace had a look of pure understanding on his face, and Juliet was glad he was easy to talk to, or that would have been a hell of a lot harder than she had anticipated. "So I'd really appreciate it if you could fit me in somewhere other than that infirmary?"

He smiled and nodded. "I'm sure I can fit you in somewhere." They got up together and made their way towards the door, which he held open for her.

"Horace, if it's okay with you ... could we maybe not tell anyone that I have an MD? I don't wanna have to repeat myself over and over ... it'd just be a lot simpler if we just forgot it?" Again, Horace nodded, letting Juliet feel relief wash over her. A new life in the 70's, she thought, and now maybe she'd be a hell of a lot happier in it if she wasn't being thrown medical cases every five minutes.

-

Daniel was the only one at the house when she got back. He took a moment to notice she'd even walked through the door, let alone said hello, as he was hunched over his notebook at the table.

"Daniel?" She said, slightly unsure of herself.

"Oh, hey Juliet. How'd the orientation go?" She moved into the kitchen, aware that Daniel was now following her with his eyes very closely.

"Okay, just a lot of questions. Do you want some dinner?" She asked, opening the freezer.

"Erh, no, thank you. What did you tell them?" He asked.

Juliet felt the corners of her mouth twitch. "Nothing truthful," she joked. "Where did he put you?" She asked, reaching for a hand full of grapes upon deciding she didn't want to cook anything tonight.

"What?"

"Horace ... he put the others in security, didn't he? Where'd he put you?" She was genuinely interested, but frowned when Daniel suddenly looked uncomfortable.

"Erh ... he didn't put me anywhere, Juliet," he said.

"What do you mean?"

"I'm not staying here," he admitted.

"Excuse me?" She said, in a rather more forceful voice than she had intended to. "What do you mean 'you're staying here'?"

"Horace knows I'm a physicist, and yesterday I asked him if I could be sent to their headquarters, in Ann Arbor."

"Why would you do that, Daniel?"

"Because," he started, getting up and joining her in the kitchen, "the more information I can get on this place, on these people, and on the work they do here ... the closer we are to getting back into 2004."

All Juliet could do was stare, her mouth slightly open and her eyebrows raised. "Have you told James?"

He shook his head, "not yet."

Juliet shook her head, as though trying to figure out what he had said, though she knew what he meant. "How are you even gonna leave? The sub left yesterday!"

"I'm going to gather as much information as I can about the stations they have already here, and then get on the sub when it comes back in a month." Daniel looked more determined than Juliet had ever seen him. She folded her arms.

"You leaving doesn't have anything to do with a 3 foot Charlotte running around this place, does it?" She looked at him sternly. Daniel closed his eyes, turning his head to his right.

"No, no it's not about Charlotte. It's about making things right."

She watched as he went back to the table and buried his face back into his journal. She shook her head upon closing her eyes and sighed. She only hoped he knew what he was doing, and that he could indeed fix things.

-

Sawyer found her, finally, in the canteen. It was getting dark and he had been looking for her for the last hour. When he had returned back to the house after his 'rules and regulations' talk with Harry, Daniel had told him that Juliet had disappeared hours before.

She was sitting alone at a big round table, playing with the food in front of her. She looked tiny, sitting in the middle of a hall filled with people, all of whom seemed to be talking about the 'new kids on the block'. He watched as she rested her head on the palm of her hand and sighed gently to himself, walking over towards her.

"Well now, doesn't this look fun?" He quipped, taking a seat beside her. She turned her head towards him, not looking at all surprised to see him there.

"Excuse me?" Her voice was quiet, and had an almost exhausted appeal to it.

"Well I've just never seen anybody stare so intently at a damn plate before ..."

Her mouth stretched into a small smile as she looked back down at the plate, and then returned his gaze once more. "I was just thinking ..."

"About what?" His question made her smile spread slightly further towards her eyes. Apparently he had taken notice when she had told him to just ask whenever he was curious as to what she was thinking. She tore her eyes away from his, fiddling with the fork she had rested down as she sat back in the chair.

"I told Horace I didn't want to be a doctor here."

"You did what?" Sawyer stared in disbelief. That wasn't part of their plan. She was on the boat with her boyfriend, Goodwin, whoever _that_ was, and she was their doctor. "Why in the hell would you do that?"

When she looked back up her tear filled eyes were almost cold. "Because I can't do that anymore!"

"You're a _doctor_!"

"No, James ... doctors save lives. Doctors are amazing people with amazing abilities. I stopped being amazing at my job a long time ago. I don't want to be a doctor anymore. Please, promise me you won't tell anybody else that I am one ... please?" He was surprised that she was actually begging him of something. He nodded in agreement but frowned when her eyes shot behind his left shoulder with an odd look in them. He turned; apart from a few more people having entered he saw nothing out of the ordinary, but she looked a mixture between shocked and ... there was no other word for it, scared.

"What's the matter?"

"That man ..." her eyes did nothing but glance towards Sawyer and back behind him again. He turned, his own eyes finally landing on the man in question.

"Yeah, what about him?"

"The name on his jumpsuit ... it says Roger Linus," Juliet only then let her gaze fall back on Sawyer's, mostly out of curiosity for his reaction. His eyes widened somewhat, and he looked back behind them.

"Linus ... as in Ben?!" His voice was quiet, but harsh.

"You know more than one?"

Sawyer couldn't believe it ... even in the damn seventies they couldn't escape that bug eyed bastard's presence. "Do you think he's here? In the Dharma?" Juliet shook her head, though not as an exact answer to his question, but more out of confusion.

"He told me he was born on the island ... I just assumed he meant he was with the others from then. Though, maybe not."

"Maybe ..." Sawyer sighed, resigning himself to the fact that Benjamin Linus being here in the 70's probably wasn't all that crazy at all. Juliet, however, looked upset. She obviously had some sort of history with the man that had once beaten him black and blue, but Sawyer knew even if he did ask, he wouldn't get an answer. Not a real one anyway. Instead he'd get a sarcastic remark or possibly she'd just ignore the question all together. He stood up. "Well there's no point in harassing the man about it now ... come on, we'll go back to the house, crack open a few beers and kick Miles' ass at poker."

Juliet had to smile. She had come to find over the past weeks that James had an incredible ability to make light about any situation. His optimism had an almost infectious quality to it, one that not even she could refuse. "Sounds like a plan ... only, not poker. I'm beginning to think we're killing his spirit with every game he loses."

Sawyer chuckled, holding the door from the canteen open for her as they walked back to the house. He was very aware that everybody was watching them leave, but he ignored it as best he could. It still seemed ever so slightly odd to him, that he could act so normal around someone he had once hated. Though he wasn't really sure he could say he did ever hate her ... perhaps it was just because she had been one of them. Whatever it was, it was certainly no more and his relationship with Juliet now had a somewhat surreal aspect. She had an unbelievably calming effect on him; Sawyer couldn't really tell anyone why he listened when she spoke and no one else, but he did. He had come to feel protective over her, another thing he definitely hadn't expected. Would he call her a friend? Yes. He could tell anyone that without hesitation, but the one thing he found most bizarre was that he began to trust her from the second she told him the freighter had blown up. The look in her eyes was one of such sorrow he knew he had no reason to question her motives ever again.

"So what do you feel like playing?" Her voice pulled him from his thoughts. They were back at the house. He smiled, opening the door for her.

"You choose," he said, following her into the house. She looked at him sceptically; he knew she was thinking he would hate whatever he suggested. "Really ... I don't mind. Trust me."

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	5. Chapter 5

**Okay, firstly, VERY sorry it's been a while since I updated. I had to have my grieving time after that heart wrenching final. I am now in absolute denial and shouting everywhere that Juliet IS alive! Have faith people! Anway, I hope you like this chapter! I tried to make it more about both Juliet and Sawyer sensing a change about themselves.**

"You know ... I still don't get why you'd rather be a damn grease monkey than a doctor." Juliet smiled Sawyer's words. They had been in the Dharma for a month now and for the first time since she'd got to the island, Juliet could quite easily say she was happy. They'd had a few shocks upon being there, such as the revelation that there was indeed a 9 year old Benjamin Linus running around the island, as well as the rather mind boggling fact that Miles had discovered his parents were living there, but Juliet hadn't let it get to her. Sawyer had said a number of times; it was their chance to start over.

They were sitting in the canteen eating lunch with Daniel when again; James questioned why Juliet liked playing with cars rather than saving lives. She laughed it off for what seemed like the hundredth time, "at least this way the only thing I'll ever have on my hands is oil. The last thing I need is any more blood on them." She smiled again, trying to lift the awkward turn the conversation had just taken as Miles fell into a chair next to her.

"What's with you, Enos?"

"Nothing, I just can't stand Jerry. He makes me want to slap the smile off his face every time I see him."

Juliet didn't really listen as Miles continued to talk to the others; she was too lost in her own little world. She rested her chin on both her hands, not staring at anything in particular; seemingly oblivious that Sawyer was watching her from across the table.

She did that ... when she was completely and utterly lost in thought. He watched her as her blue eyes didn't blink and a content look spread across her face. She let out a sigh which was only audible to him because he was taking in her every move. It was something he found to peaceful ... just to sit in silence and watch her; it calmed him.

Juliet tried to bite back the smile which threatened. She knew he was looking at her again ... she could feel his eyes on her. She looked up slowly, catching him before he could snatch his eyes way. A small smirk tugged at the corners of her mouth as he rolled his eyes.

"So have you figured out what you'll do when you get to Ann Arbor?" Miles asked Daniel. It was no longer a secret between just him and Juliet, since she had made him tell Sawyer, who, to her surprise, didn't really seem all that bothered. She had questioned him, asking why it was fine for Daniel to leave but not for her. He had answered with a simple shrug and mumbled something along the lines of "Why would I care what he does?"

"Try and find out as much about the Dharma as I can. Your dad seem-"

"He's not my dad," looks were exchanged between Juliet and Sawyer as Miles snapped at Daniel.

"_Dr Chang_ seems absolutely certain there's a way to channel the energy which may have caused the time shifts. So I need to make sure I figure it out before he does."

"How do you know that?" Juliet frowned.

"Because he isn't exactly coy about the situation."

Silence fell upon the group. Again, Juliet caught Sawyer's eye, though found nothing to smile about this time. She reached up to brush a fallen strand of hair back off her face and pulled her long blonde hair into a high ponytail. "I've gotta get back to the motor pool ..." She stood up, mildly surprised when Sawyer followed suit.

"I'll come with," he said, beading goodbye to the others and following her out into the sunshine. It had been December when the flashes had first started, so to their surprise when they finally stopped in 1974 it was mid July. Sawyer squinted his eyes in the sun, keeping in mind how hot Juliet had said it could get on the island during the summer.

He kept his eyes on her as she walked in front, the top half of her baggy jumpsuit tied causally around her waist, revealing the tiny grey vest top she was wearing underneath. They passed both of their houses; a nice touch Horace had given them a house each just a few doors from each other, and though he enjoyed the privacy, Sawyer couldn't help but miss having the others around.

He was so lost in his own world he walked straight into the back of Juliet, who had stopped abruptly on the path. His chest hit her back with a sharp thud, he was just about to spring back in surprise but instead found his hands resting on her near bare shoulders.

"CHARLOTTE! Come BACK!" Jeanette ran over to them as Charlotte ran straight past Juliet in a fit of giggles, following another little girl who had stopped Juliet in her path in the first place. "I'm so sorry!"

Juliet smiled, shaking her head to say it was fine as the woman ran after her child. "You think she's ever considered a leash?" Sawyer muttered. He didn't mean for her to hear it, but Juliet laughed all the same, rolling her eyes and carrying on walking. For just a moment, Sawyer stayed still, his hands in the exact same place, as if Juliet's shoulders were still beneath them.

"Damn I forget how hot it can get here ..." her words snapped him out of his frozen position and he jogged slightly to catch up with her. She wiped her brow with the back of her hand, reaching the motor pool. She turned on him suddenly, smiling somewhat suspiciously. "Thank you ... for walking me the 50 feet from the canteen ..." she chuckled as he smirked at her.

"Watch it, Blondie, or I won't do it again."

Juliet smiled, leaning back against the work bench they were standing next to, stroking the hem of her top. "Hey Jim ... Juliet, I'm gonna go for my lunch now, you gonna be okay here?" Caleb, one of the other guys who she worked with at the motor pool seemed to appear from nowhere. He was what Sawyer would brand your typical hippie, long wavy hair, sideburns with a thick moustache to match.

"I'll be fine." She smiled.

"You're a brave man, Merc," Sawyer quipped, "leavin' her in charge of your digs." Juliet let her jaw drop, mocking a hurtful look as she swatted him across the chest. He and Caleb both laughed.

"I'll be back in an hour, okay?" Juliet nodded and watched as someone she could only call her 'boss' walked off. She turned to face the bench, only to have the sleeve of her jumpsuit get caught on the draw handle. Juliet stepped back, making the bench shake slightly as the sleeve sprang back to dangle from her waist again. She sighed, bending down to pick up some of the tools that had fallen onto the floor.

That's when he saw it, just the edge of a distinct mark on her lower back. He frowned, smirking slightly, "well now ... where'd you get the art work?"

"Excuse me?" She frowned, standing back up to face him.

"Don't be shy, they're sexy," he grinned, flashing his dimples.

"What are talking about?"

"You're tattoo." As soon as the words had left his mouth, he noticed her seemingly relaxed attitude switch to one of nervousness. She brushed a stray strand of hair from her face, clearing her throat.

Juliet found it impossible to meet his eyes. Of course he meant the mark on the bottom of her back. She glanced in his direction quickly, and then went about putting all the stray equipment left on the bench back in their rightful homes. "I don't have a tattoo," she said quietly, pulling her vest down before looking him right in the eyes and lying. "It's a birth mark," she smiled, praying he would let it drop.

"Oh ... sorry, I thought ..."

"It's fine, don't worry about it." He looked as though he was about to say something else, but Miles' voice sounded from the walkie inside Sawyer's pocket. _"LaFleur, if you don't get back to the security station right now I'm not being held responsible for what I do to this man!" _Juliet raised her eyebrows and laughed. "Maybe you'd better go or Jerry's gonna end up in a body bag."

"Son of a bitch ..." Sawyer muttered as Juliet watched him go. It wasn't that she had wanted to lie to him about her scar ... it was just easier not to tell him the truth of how it came to be. If she had told him what it was, he would have asked to see it, and if she had shown it to him, she would have had to explain why they gave it to her ... which was something she really didn't feel like dragging up. Its better this way, she told herself, staring down into her hands.

"Hey! Juliet!" She looked up to see none other than Roger Linus making his way towards her.

"Hey ... Roger ..." she said slowly, as though taking caution in every word she spoke.

"Listen, Horace wants me to go over to the hydra until tomorrow night just to give the place a quick do over, over there, and I was wondering if you could just check up on my kid tonight?" His words made her nervous. Yes, of course she could check up on him, but she didn't want to. She didn't want to be anywhere near the nine year old Benjamin Linus they had been introduced to a few weeks earlier. She hesitated before answering.

"Oh erm ... well I don't no ... I mean, he doesn't really know me."

"You'll be fine, he's a big kid, and he can make his own food and stuff I just need someone to make sure the little bugger gets to bed on time ... and to school tomorrow morning."

Juliet sighed, knowing there wasn't a way for her to say no without looking like a heartless cow. She nodded, "yeah, okay. Sure," the words left her mouth slowly, as though they were dragging themselves up her throat, and as soon as she said them she regretted it.

"Great, thanks, you're a life saver!" With that and happy smile, Roger wondered off, leaving Juliet to curse herself in the heat.

-

It was nearly six o'clock in the evening and the heat was still so overbearing Sawyer had resolved to read his book on the cold kitchen floor next to the wide open fridge with a beer in his hand. The bare skin on his back was sticky against the cupboard he was leaning against, but his book had finally managed to let him forget the sweltering heat surrounding him.

"Son of a bitch," he sighed as a quiet knock rapped on the door. He closed the fridge as he got up, wondering over to the door, not really all that surprised to see Juliet standing there with a smile on her face which made him curious. He stepped back letting her in without asking what she wanted.

Juliet raised her brow, looking him up and down. The only way she wouldn't see how attractive he was, was if she was blind. She leaned on the kitchen counter as he passed her a beer, she smiled, it was almost out of habit now. He jumped up to sit on the counter opposite her, dimples showing as he took a swig from the bottle in his hand. His legs were near naked due to the khaki coloured knee length shorts he was wearing and his chest was bare. "Still not used to this heat, huh?"

"Well clearly you are or you wouldn't be walking around in _jeans_," she chuckled at his words, attempting to peal the dharma label off her beer bottle, she glanced up at him smiling, earning a curious smirk back. "Just spit it out, Blondie."

"Spit what out?" She said, but she couldn't stop her smile from growing as she moved around the counter and further into the kitchen. How in the hell did he always know when she wanted something? She sighed, "wanna come and look after a creepy kid with me?"

"What?" He snorted.

"Roger Linus asked me to look after Ben tonight because Horace asked him to go to the Hydra ..."

Sawyer frowned, a little gobsmacked. Not that Roger had asked Juliet, that guy had taken a liking to her that Sawyer hated, but that she had appeared to have said yes. "Are you serious?"

"What else could I have done?! It's not like I could have told him I was busy tonight ... no one here is _ever_ busy!" Sawyer looked at her sternly, causing her to groan, "oh please, James! I'll cook your dinner for the next week!" She walked over to him sitting on the counter, his eyebrows had now rose in an sceptical sort of way. "I don't wanna go on my own ... and I'm not above begging," it was then, when she clasped her hands together as though to pray that he sighed outwardly.

"God dammit, Jules," was all he said, but he jumped off the counter anyway, grabbing his t-shirt from the sofa and moving towards the door. "You coming?"

Juliet felt a wide smile spring onto her face and skipped towards him as he opened the door and they went out into the sunshine together.

-

Awkwardness was the only word that he could think of. Sawyer looked around the house of Linus, careful not to look at Juliet or he knew he'd start laughing at the uncomfortable situation at hand. Roger had looked particularly annoyed when he had opened the front door an hour earlier, not just to Juliet, but to Sawyer too; and it seemed as though he only let the other man in his home rather begrudgingly after Juliet had casually said "I hope it's okay James came too?"

"So ... Ben ... do you want something to eat? I can make-"

"You don't have to do that. I can make myself a peanut butter sandwich," Juliet frowned at Ben, who had finally strung more than two words together since she and Sawyer had arrived.

"A peanut butter sandwich?" She replied, eyebrow raised.

"Yeah ... I make them most nights. It's no big deal," he said, looking down into his hands, as though embarrassed about what he had said. It wasn't easy for Juliet, to know what this boy would become, to know what he later in life would put her through and feel sorry for him; but she did. She was looking at this little boy with nothing but pity in her eyes. She glanced over at Sawyer, who also had pity in his eyes, and cleared her throat, smiling.

"Well ... you're not having peanut butter tonight."

After that, the rest of the night seemed to fly by. Juliet made dinner while Ben asked Sawyer if he would play chess with him; Sawyer finally said yes after Juliet guilt tripped him into it by telling him he was denying a nine year old boy a chance of a bit of fun, and despite what he would grow up to be, he wasn't that person yet.

"He's asleep, I think," Juliet said quietly, walking out onto the porch where Sawyer was sitting with a can of dharmas finest. She sat down next to him, shaking her head when he offered her a swig.

"I think I can say with some certainty this is the weirdest night I have ever had in my entire adult life," he said, an amused look on his face. Juliet giggled, nodding in agreement.

"Yeah ... me too. Who'd have thought we'd ever have so much fun playing chess with Benjamin Linus?"

Sawyer shook his head, looking up at the sky, which was a mixture of purples and reds as the sun set. "I wonder what made him go like that ..."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean ... he's a sweet kid ... I just wonder what made him turn out to be such a manipulative bastard," Juliet looked over at the man sitting next to her. He was looking up at the sky with nothing but wonder in his eyes. He had changed since the flashes, since they had ended up in the 70's, and she couldn't quite figure out what it was that had done it. The loss of Kate, maybe? Though Juliet had never really seen grief change anybody for the better. Maybe she couldn't really say he had changed at all ... he was probably always this thoughtful; she just hadn't known it back then.

He could feel her eyes on him, but waited a moment before returning her gaze. Sawyer smiled slightly, knowing she hadn't expected him to look back at her. She glanced down into her lap, shaking her head.

"Who knows? The Others?" A sudden melancholy sadness washed over her heart, "I guess it doesn't really matter. You and I both know he isn't gonna be so sweet forever."

Juliet let her tear filled eyes lock with Sawyers. Both of them were suddenly on the exact same level, silently reaching an understanding that neither would ever acknowledge, but both knew was there. It was he who broke the gaze, clearing his throat and crushing the now empty can in his hands. He placed it on the grass in front of him and leaned back on his hands, watching as Juliet followed suit. He nudged her with his shoulder, shimmying his hand just slightly closer towards hers, just enough for his index finger to brush against hers. He didn't bother to fight the understanding smile that spread onto his face. It didn't quite reach his eyes, and the dimples, they didn't show so much, but Juliet smiled back all the same.

He _had _changed. Whether it was just towards her or in himself in general, she didn't know, only time would tell.

Time ... it was an odd thing; and one that, apparently, _could _be tampered with. However, no matter how odd it was, there was no doubt in her that told her it wasn't a healer. She had been broken, by a many number of things over a long period of time, so much so that by the time the freighter had blown up, Juliet was numb; and for a while she liked it. She liked not being in the slightest bit bothered about what happened next because it meant she wouldn't feel herself break all over again. But they had a life now; a new life, one that had managed to fix her, and Juliet found she didn't feel as empty as she did before. It hit her then, like a ton of bricks, that he was the reason. James was the reason she could feel again.

Juliet shifted her hand ever so slightly under his. "Thank you ..." she said quietly, looking down at their hands. Sawyer looked at her curiously.

"For what?"

_Fixing me._ "Just ...," she smiled then, feeling her cheeks go warm, "for coming with me to look after him." She rested her head on his shoulder.

Sawyer smiled, "no problem. Just remember you gotta cook my dinner for the next week." Juliet laughed, remembering what she had promised him earlier.

"You got it."

**By now you've gathered at the end of every chapter I try and think of another way to get you review! ;) lol!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Thanks again for all your wonderful reviews, guys! They really do keep me writing :) I thought i'd try and throw a bit of angst into this chapter, as well as a possible explanation for why Jacob never visited Juliet prior to the island (that we know of anyway) I hope you like it! I also apologize for any spelling mistakes, my spell checker seems to have died on me! LOL!**

Halloween; it was a holiday he absolutely _hated._ Of all the holidays the world celebrated, Halloween was the one Sawyer tried his hardest to boycott. Of course it was impossible, wherever he went, back in the real world, whether it be the shops or a suburban village, those damn pumpkins were everywhere. There was a tiny part of him that actually thought the dharma would be different, but then October had rolled around and there was a certain buzz in the air, and he knew it was because in just a few short weeks they would throw a big party and all of his 70's friends would throw on ridiculous costumes and stuff their faces with candy.

"Oh come on! It's not _that_ bad!" Juliet snorted after he told her he couldn't stand it. They were sitting on the couch in Juliet's living room after eating more lasagne than either had the stomach for.

"It's worse! People runnin' around in over the top costumes beggin' other people for candy?"

"Oh yes, I can see why it would bug you," she started, bringing her knees up to her chest, "when someone goes about their night pretending to be someone that they're not whilst taking as much as they can from others." She smirked at him, he looked as though he was about to say something back but stopped himself. She was right, maybe trick or treating was the one day a year innocent people could get away with conning.

"Touché," he grinned back at her from the other side of the sofa.

They had been stuck in the seventies for nearly three and a half months now. Daniel had been gone for weeks, and all of them had begun to think he probably wouldn't be coming back any time soon. Juliet had made it her mission to have Jin fluent in English by Christmas, and made Sawyer help her whenever she was giving Jin one of their 'lessons'; which was usually most of the time, because they had them at her house and James seemed to be there more than she was most days.

"Want another glass of dharmas finest?" he asked, standing up. She knew she'd already had enough to drink, but held out her glass up to him anyway.

"Not too much though, cause I don't-" she was cut off by a knock at the door. They both looked at each other, and then towards the door, as though they were both confused who on earth would be calling round if they were both there. Sawyer put their glasses on the counter and opened the door slowly.

"Oh ... hey Jim, I didn't know you were here," Sawyer looked back at Amy, who looked slightly confused, "Erm ... is Juliet home?" It was only when she said that he realised he had opened the front door to a house that wasn't his. He laughed, mostly at himself and held the door open for Amy to step inside.

"Hey Amy ... you okay?" Juliet smiled from the couch, but swung her legs off it and onto the floor, throwing a quick glance at Sawyer, who seemed to take the hint.

"I'll leave you two ladies to it, see you tomorrow?" he nodded towards Juliet, not quite knowing why he was even asking her that anymore. Of course he would see her tomorrow, he saw her every day. She nodded, smiling as he shut the door behind him with a click.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realise he was here ..." Amy sat on the very edge of her couch, almost as though she wasn't quite sure what to do with herself.

"Don't be, he's always here," she got up and wandered into the kitchen, grabbing the glasses Sawyer had left on the side, "you want a drink?"

"Oh ... no thank you, I just popped over to see if I could rope you into helping me decorate the rec room for the Halloween party?"

Juliet raised her eyebrows, willing herself not to laugh at the irony. She was just about to answer Amy when suddenly the lights went out. Both women looked towards the ceiling, as though looking at the lights would explain why they had blown so suddenly. Juliet sighed, "dammit." She got up and slowly made her way towards the closet, in an attempt to reach the break box, letting her eyes adjust to the darkness that engulfed them.

"Huh ..." she heard Amy say.

"What's up?" She called, frowning when the lights didn't come back on as she pulled the switches back and forth.

"The entire village is out ..." Amy didn't wait for Juliet to reply, and instead pulled the front door open to join the many others now standing in complete darkness on their porches.

Juliet frowned and rushed to join her. Sawyer was the first person she forced her eyes to search the blackness for. Her eyes finally rested on him, coming out of his house with a very confused look on his face.

"Okay, people, there's no need to panic ... we've got a slight technical hitch up at the tempest. We should be back up with the power again soon. Candles are in the rec room if anyone needs any, i'll keep you all updated if anything else happens," Horace said. He came as if from nowhere, standing in the middle of the entire society for his speech, but then moved off again quickly. Juliet and Amy exchanged looks of confusion and followed him as he made his way over to Harry, the head of security.

Sawyer followed Juliet with his eyes as she and Amy moved after Horace, and took off to meet her as they reached Harry.

"You okay?" he asked, but before she had time to answer Horace spoke.

"Okay, Harry I need you to get yourself up to the tempest now. The guys aren't answering their walkies ..."

"Oh god ... what if the hostiles-" Amy started, worry and fear filled her eyes.

"If the hostiles have done anything, they'll have broken the truce, which will not bode well for them, believe me," Horace placed a friendly hand on her shoulder.

"Okay, LaFleur, you heard the man. Let's get going," Harry said, causing both Juliet and Sawyer to look at the older man with a certain amount of alarm in their eyes. Sawyer sighed, throwing a glance at her then rolling his eyes.

"I'll go get my zapper,"

"Meet me at the motor pool in 5 minutes."

Juliet followed Sawyer as he hurried back to his house. "What are you doing?"

"What do you mean?" He wasn't looking at her, instead searching his kitchen drawers for the taser Horace had given him months ago. He hadn't once had to use it.

"Do you really think going up there is a good idea?"

"Well I ain't exactly jumpin' for joy about it, but someone's gotta make sure Richard and his band of merry men have stayed inside their lines," he answered her, giving her a sarcastic smirk as he waved his taser in front of her.

Juliet let out an exasperated sigh. Now really wasn't the time for his quips. "Well what if they have? You could get yourself killed," her look turned of one from concern to anger as she stepped closed towards him, pushing her index finger into his chest, "and I swear to god if that happens and you leave me in 1974 with nothing but a temperamental Chinese man and a Korean who can barely string a sentence together I'm gonna find a way to resurrect you just so I can kill you again!"

Sawyer looked down at her as best he could, she had gotten surprisingly up close to his face as she threatened him. He swallowed slowly, even in the dark he could see the ice blue eyes staring back up at him. He shook his head before he spoke.

"I'm not gonna get killed! We're just gonna go see what's happened ... we don't even know if it _is _the hostiles!" He didn't know why all of a sudden it was important to him to make sure Juliet wouldn't worry. Usually if somebody tried to stop him from doing anything he would just go ahead and do it without thinking about how they would feel ... but Juliet wasn't just 'anybody'. She was his best friend. He watched as she relaxed and backed off slightly.

"Don't do anything stupid ..." she said, shaking her head.

"I promise," Sawyer felt his eyes soften and rubbed his hands up her arms, in an attempt to reassure her. He was mildly surprised when she pulled him into a hug, but wrapped his arms around her tiny waist and squeezed her close to him all the same. Juliet turned to bury her head into the crook of his neck, and then pressed her lips to the line of his jaw.

"Jim! Oh sorry ..." Horace opened his door without knocking, making Juliet spring backwards from Sawyer faster than he could even begin to enjoy the feel of her lips against his skin. Horace looked down at the floor, obviously embarrassed. "Harry's waiting for you ..."

Juliet rubbed her neck, pressing her lips together into a small smile which she threw towards Sawyer, who nodded at her. "I'll be back soon ..."

And with that, he followed Horace, leaving her in his home. She moved towards the window, peeping through the blinds, she watched him jump into a dharma van and drive off into the blackness.

-

The headlights of the van lit up the jungle as Harry, Sawyer and Jerry made their way towards the tempest. Silence pressed in around them, all lost in thought about what they would find when they reached the power station.

Sawyer wondered if Juliet had been right ... if he was indeed letting himself go on a suicide mission. The prospect of dying was never one that really frightened him, he never had anything to really live for before, so he always figured that when the time for dying came, he'd take it like a man and have it done with. Even now, death didn't scare him. What scared him was the thought of leaving Juliet alone in this place. Sure, she was a big girl, and in some ways she was probably stronger then even he was (though she'd never hear him admit that), but over their time together, he had gotten to know her like he had never known anybody before. He knew that if anything happened to him, she would stay on the island, waiting for John Locke just because he had told her to. And the thought of her doing that frightened him more than anything else could.

The van lurched to a halt, pulling Sawyer from his thoughts. "Okay ... get your taser's ready. Walkie's off, if the hostiles are in there I don't want anyone calling through. We're gonna need to be cautious about this. I'll go in first, Jerry, you wait for my signal before you follow. Jim, stay here and keep a watch out for anything, you can come in once we've secured the inside." Harry kept his voice low, throwing looks between both Jerry and Sawyer, who nodded and silently climbed out of the van after him. It was pitch black, so much so Sawyer could barely see his hand in front of his face. Harry pulled a small torch out from his pocket, keeping the light on the ground and as small as possible in case anyone were to see it.

Five minutes had gone by and Sawyer was in two minds whether to ignore his boss and go in the station without his signal anyway. He had been round the building once and found nothing out of the ordinary. He was standing in the enterance to the tempest, looking back and forth between the van he had been told to stay with and the tunnel into the station his colleugues had wandered into. A sudden rustle in the bushes made him pull out his taser instantly; his finger ready on the trigger. He frowned, looking around, trying to make out anything he could in the darkness which engulfed him.

A light to the side of him caught his eye, and he whipped round to see none other than Richard Alpert standing there, one hand holding a flaming branch, the other held up in surrender. "James," he nodded towards Sawyer as he pushed the branch far into the ground. "There's no point in calling for your friends, they won't be coming out just yet," Richard continued when he saw James open his mouth and turn his head slightly towards the tunnel of the Tempest.

"You broke the truce," Sawyer said, matter of factly.

"I didn't want to, trust me. But my orders come from someone you don't say no too. He told me to do this,"

"Why?"

"So I could find you, James," Richard didn't break Sawyer's gaze once.

"Why would you wanna do that?" Sawyer growled, suddenly wishing he had listened to Juliet's pleas not to go.

"Because, my leader ... he needs to know just how it was you got to the island in the first place,"

Sawyer sighed, sucking his teeth before answering. "Plane crash," Richard nodded, as though preparing himself to take in everything he was about to hear.

"How many of you survived this plane crash?"

"Over 50 of us," he said, momentarily counting in his head.

"Over 50? So 50 people time travelled to the 70's with you?"

"Most of them are dead now. And six of us got rescued-"

"Wait, what? Six of your people got rescued off this island?"

"Well that's what I just said," Sawyer smirked, almost liking the fact in this situation he had the upper hand on Alpert, "there was only 7 of us left when the island started moving through time. John Locke left, and the rest of us are now in the dharma,"

"I need names,"

"Excuse me?"

"Names! Of the people who are here, and the people who got rescued,"

"I ain't givin' you any names,"

"I'm sorry, it's not up to you, James. You gonna need to tell me the names or it's never going to happen,"

Sawyer frowned at Richard's words. "What the hell are you talkin' about?"

"You wouldn't understand,"

"Try me," he spat.

Richard sighed, "my leader is the reason that anybody comes or leaves the island. What plane was it that crashed?"

"How the hell do you expect me to kn-"

"What flight? The number, the company, the dates-"

"Oceanic airlines. Flight 815 from Sydney to Los Angeles, September 22nd 2004." Richard nodded, grateful that the man before him had started to co-operate.

"Okay, now the names of the people who left,"

"Why do you-"

"I don't have the time to explain, James. Now you either tell me the names or i'm going to tell the group of my people inside this dharma station to kill one of the four they're holding hostage at the moment,"

Sawyer felt nothing but rage bubble up inside him. "Son of a bitch ..." he muttered, but mainly to himself. "If you want the names, I need your word ... nothing's gonna happen to them."

"They'll be fine, I promise you. I just need to know ... if you don't tell me, my leader will never know who he's going to have to see so they'll come to this island in the first place. Do you understand now, James?"

"You're tellin' me the only way people can come to this place is if ... your leader ... what, summons them?"

"Something like that, yes."

Sawyer sighed heavily, closing his eyes and not quite believing he was letting the words fall from his mouth, "Jack Shepard, Sayid Jarrah, Hugo Reyes, Sun Kwon ... you gettin' any of this?"

"Yeah, I got it, who are the other two?"

"Aaron Littleton, but you won't need to worry 'bout him. He was born here."

"Okay ... and the last one?"

Sawyer let his eyes lock with Richards. Green on brown as neither let go of the gaze. The battle in his mind whether to tell him Kate's name or not was a strong one. If he was lying ... if he hurt Kate, Sawyer would never forgive himself. But if he was telling the truth, Sawyer would _have _to say her name or she'd never get to the island in the first place. "Kate Austen."

"Thank you ... now ... apart from John Locke, who else has been flashing through time with you?"

Sawyer hated himself for even letting himself think the names of his friends. But the damage had already been done. "Jin Kwon ... Miles straume ... and me,"

"Is that all?"

He wasn't quite sure why he left Juliet out. She had told him that Richard had been the one to bring her here, so he felt sure she'd get to the island whether he gave her name or not. The desire to protect her was one so strong Sawyer was surprised when he felt his head nod, "yeah ... that's all."

"Thank you, James." And with that, Richard pulled the flaming branch from the ground, bringing his fingers to his mouth and issuing a whistle so loud Sawyer flinched. As if from nowhere, six armed men walked out of the tempest and moved to stand behind Richard, suddenly, the noise of what Sawyer could only assume was the power generater came from inside,a long with the lights to the station they were standing outside. A moment passed before another man came out from the tunnel. Sawyer never once let his gaze drop from Richard as all this was going on. "You're friends won't remember anything. I'm sure you can think of something to tell them. If I were you I'd get in there now, they'll be coming around soon." Those were the last words Sawyer heard before Richard and the rest of the hotsiles wandered back into the jungle they had come from.

-

It had been an hour since Sawyer had gone, and Juliet found she was pacing in his living room, rubbing her arms as she went. Horace and Amy were sitting on his couch; they had ended up staying his in house when Juliet had casually gone to the fridge and offered them a drink as though she were going about her own kitchen. The lights were yet to come bakc on and the entire barracks were aglow with candles.

"He'll be okay, Juliet," Horace said with a small, unsure smile on his face. Juleit did nothing but glare at the hippie before her.

"It's been over an hour, Horace, and still no word from them? If we don't get something on that walkie in the next ten minutes I'm getting a gun from the motor pool and driving up there myself."

Amy and Horace exchanged glances. Neither had ever seen Juliet so forceful before, but put it down to the fact she was worried about Jim. "Don't you think that's a bit rash? Jim wouldn't want-"

"How do you know what he'd want?!" She snapped. In truth she knew Horace was right, and if Sawyer found her at the tempest he'd kill her himself for being so stupid. But she didn't care. Juliet couldn't remember the last time she had felt so overcome with worry for someone, and the fact she was willing to risk her life for him scared her slightly. She looked back at Horace, "I'm sorry. You're right ... I just ..."

"You're just worried. We know," Amy smiled at the blonde. Juliet was about to say something back when suddenly the lights came on. All three looked up the ceiling, again, as if they expected the lights to tell them why they had gone out in the first place. Juliet moved towards the middle of the room and reached for the walkie Horace had left on the table.

"James, It's Juliet. Are you there? James?" She sighed heavily, throwing the walkie down on the sofa and running her fingers through her hair frustratingly. It was in that second she decided she couldn't wait any longer. Yanking the front door open, she strode across the grass towards the motor pool, Horace and Amy in hot persuit.

"Juliet! What are you doing?"

"You can't go up there!"

She ignored them both, only stopping when she had reached the motor pool, which was now lit up with dim lights. She looked down at the gun cash, only to see it was locked.

"Give me the keys," she said, rounding on Horace.

"No, Juliet. I'm sorry but I'm not letting you go up there."

"I'm not asking for your permission, Horace! Now give me the damn keys!" Horace tried to take hold of Juliet's arms but she snatched them from his grip, quite shocked by the tears that suddenly filled her eyes. "Now!!!"

"Juliet-"

"NO! No! You don't get to talk me out of this! If you had _any _clue how much I need that man ... what we've been through?! You'd be putting the gun in my hand yourself!"

"Horace!" Miles voice came from nowhere, causing all three to turn to see him jogging up to them with a walkie in his outstretched hand. "What are you doing? Harry's on the walkie for you, where's yours?"

"Harry?" Horace said in alarm, pulling the walkie from Miles' hand. "Can you hear me, man? What happened?"

"_Horace? It's the hostiles. We have no idea what happened, Jerry and I went in to the Tempest but got knocked out cold. They did the same to LaFleur outside. We woke up 5 minutes ago. The lights were on, we've checked all around but there's no sign of them. It's like they weren't even here, man. No of the equipment's damaged, nothing's been taken."_

Horace sighed, throwing a look of confusion to Miles and Amy, then glancing at Juliet to check she was still standing there. "Alright man, get back here as soon as you can."

"_Roger that."_

"Harry?"

"_Yeah?"_

"Put Jim on." Horace passed her the walkie, eyebrows raised. When let out a breath of relief as she took it from his hands, throwing a thankful smile in his direction.

"_Yeah it's LaFluer, what's up Horace?"_

"It's me," Juliet said in a quiet voice.

"_You okay?"_

She smiled, even in a crisis he still put her first. "Shouldn't I be asking you that?"

"_Ah, what's a bump on the head? I'm fine. We're on our way back now, so I'll see you in ten minutes, okay?"_

She nodded, even though she knew he couldn't see her. "Yeah ... I'll see you then."

-

The ten minutes he'd promised her seemed to take hours to go by. Juliet was pacing, again. Over and over, walking the same route around the motor pool she was sure when she looked down there'd be marks in the concrete, like reminders of her anxiety.

Her ears picked up the familiar sound of the VW bus trudging towards them. She snapped her head round to see Jerry behind the wheel as he pulled up right in front of her. It felt like the side door opened in slow motion, but all of a sudden he was right there, in front of her with a small smile on his face. Blood was trickling from his temple, but he didn't seem to notice as he stepped from the van and let Juliet pull him into their second hug of the night. She squeezed him as though her life depended on it, not quite knowing nor caring how long had gone by before she finally pulled back. His arms stayed wrapped around her waist as she brought her hands up to examine the cut on his forehead. He winced as her fingers glided over the wound.

"Sorry ..." she said.

"Don't worry," it was then he let go of her waist, taking hold of her hand and pulling her away from the motor pool in the direction of his house.

"Where are we going?"

"I have to talk to you," his voice sounded serious, so Juliet let him pull her into this dharma home.

"What's going on, James?"

"The hostiles didn't knock me out,"

"What?" her eyes immediately fell on the cut on his head.

"I did that. I had to make it look like they'd hit me too or they'd think I was in on it,"

"In on what?"

"Richard came to talk to me. He was asking me all about the crash and how many people survived. Said his leader needed to know."

Juliet felt herself sigh, "What did you tell him?"

"As much as I could," he didn't look her right in the eye. Sawyer wouldn't let himself tell her the whole story, if he did, he'd have to admit he hadn't told Richard she was with them when the island was flashing through time.

Juliet shook her head, again, letting her eyes rest on the gash oozing blood from his head. "Come here," she pulled him over to the couch, making him sit down. He watched as she moved into the kitchen, taking a small first aid kit out from one of his cupboards and then bringing it over to where he was.

They sat in silence for a short while as she patched him up. He was watching her so intently as she worked, it made his spine tingle when she touched him. Something he definitely wasn't used to and in the end he struck up a stupid conversation, asking her what was the most ridiculous thing she'd ever dressed up as for Halloween, in a feeble attempt to draw his mind from the feel of her skin on his. It worked, but only for a few moments. He cursed himself, silently, as she rambled on about a time when she was around 7 and she had dressed up as Alice from Alice and Wonderland and Rachel had dressed as the white rabbit. _Son of a bitch_, he thought, _even when I'm supposed to be lost in thought, I'm drinking up every damn word she says._

A smile lit up her face when she mentioned Rachel, she was so immersed in her story she'd stopped cleaning the wound that was making Sawyer's head throb, but he didn't care, and instead relaxed back into the sofa, only happy to listen to what she was saying.

**There you have it. One of my takes on why Jacob never went to see Juliet - because Sawyer never told Richard she was there :) Hope you liked the chapter! Review as always :)**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: hey guys! First things first, i'm SO SORRY it's taken me so long to update this story!! Writer's block is a BITCH of a thing! Not to mention exams at college and i'm snowed under with work :( (I guess it's no excuse though, and i do apologise!) I hope you're still with me on the story because i do intend to finish it! And i'll be updating 'Another Life' asap if you've been reading that too! I'm not sure when my next update will be, i'm afraid it's gonna be a bit hit and miss for a while! Sorry again!**

Halloween came around faster than Sawyer had anticipated. The three weeks it had been since his little talk with Richard had gone by in a blurring whirl. Juliet had agreed, to his relief, that it was better not to tell Jin and Miles about what had happened. The fact that the hostiles had broken the truce had sent the small community into a slight panic, especially when Horace realised they couldn't accuse them of anything without evidence; and there was none.

Juliet had agreed to help Amy with the all the preparations for the party being thrown on all hallows eve, so Sawyer hadn't seen her quite as much since she had stitched up the cut on his head. He told himself over and over that was the reason he found himself thinking about her from time to time. He wasn't even aware he was doing it until Miles mocked him.

"Jeez man, you can't go one day without seeing her, can you?"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Sawyer had snapped back, clutching the can in his hand. Himself, Jin and Miles were all sitting on his porch at the time.

"Juliet! Who else? You haven't seen her today, have you?"

"So what if I haven't?"

"So you're moping around like some love sick school boy."

It had been since Miles had said those words that she seemed to be on his mind constantly. He let himself wander into the rec room as he thought, only to be greeted by a mass of decorations and food. Amy, along with a few other equally stressed dharma ladies, was running about the place like a headless chicken.

"Hey Ames! You seen Juliet?" He called to her, noticing she wasn't in the room after a quick scan around.

"Errm … she went home to bake some more cakes I think, Jim!" She called with her head deep inside a box labeled 'DHARMA HALLOWEEN DÉCOR', and with that, Sawyer turned swiftly on his heel and walked out the door in an attempt not to be roped into helping.

-

Juliet brushed her fingers through her long blonde hair, once again letting out a frustrated sigh. She had now been stood at her wardrobe for a good ten minutes and successfully decided on the only thing her mind could throw at her. She had nothing to wear to this thing.

She had finally managed to persuade Amy to change the dress code of this thing so that anyone who didn't want to wear a costume didn't have to after weeks of being told she couldn't come if she wasn't going to dress up. And so, she stood in nothing but her underwear and stared at the many clothes she had hanging in her wardrobe, as though if she did it for long enough an outfit would magically throw itself at her. She was just about to give up and ring Rosie, the fashion queen of dharma when she heard her front door open.

"Jules?" She looked up at the sound of his voice, almost seeing him in her mind's eye walk through the front room and down the hallway.

"Erh … hang on! I'm just getting changed … I'll be out in a sec!" She looked towards the door, waiting for some sort of acknowledgment from him.

-

Sawyer nodded from the kitchen, he was about to call back to her when a certain smell hit his nose. He turned to see black smoke seeping from the cooker. "I think your cupcakes are done!" he called.

"Oh my god!" Juliet squeaked from the bedroom running out as fast as she could to attempt to stop what seemed like the millionth batch of cakes she'd made from burning. "Son of a bitch," she sighed, throwing the tray down onto the side. She turned slowly, suddenly very aware she was only wearing a bra and panties. She shook her head as heat flooded her face and she couldn't help but grin at the situation. He would never let this one go.

But he hadn't said one word. She frowned slightly as his eyes seemed fixed in a deep frown near her navel. She arched her eyebrow. "You wanna take a picture? It'll last longer," she smirked as he moved forward towards her. "I was jok-" but he had grabbed her wrist and twisted her around before she could stop him.

"Funny lookin' birth mark," he growled.

She felt her eyes close slowly as she sighed. Caught out in her lie, she held the top of her nose briefly before turning back around to face the southern man before her. Once or twice, she opened her mouth and closed it again as he waited for the explanation which wouldn't come naturally.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly, casting her eyes towards his feet because they refused to meet his eyes. "It's not a birth mark," was all that she could say.

"Well I never, hear I was thinkin' it'd been drawn on by crayons," her eyes met his at the remark. He sighed. "Where did you get it?"

Juliet held his gaze, and leaned back on the kitchen counter. "Jack saved my life."

"What?"

"I ... they wanted to kill me, because I did something I shouldn't have ... Jack told them if they killed me then he'd let Ben die after his surgery so they ... they ..."

"They _branded_ you instead?" Anger shot through his body at the thought of anyone hurting her. Juliet's eyes filled with tears, and he could tell she didn't want to talk about it, but that didn't stop him from asking. "What did you do?"

She couldn't lie. She wanted to, but lying to him had a tendency to come back and bite her on the ass. So instead she took one deep breath and looked him square in the eye. "I killed Danny."

It took him less than a second to realise exactly who she meant. She had killed Picket to save him and Kate ... she had nearly died to save them. "I-"

"Don't say you're sorry James ... I didn't do it for you. I did it because Ben gave me another empty promise. I was just stupid enough to fall for that one. The scar on my back is there because of me ..."

For a moment, they just looked at each other, until he moved forward in one swift step and hugged her so hard he nearly lifted her off her feet. Juliet was shocked for a split second, but smiled and squeezed him back. "Are you just hugging me because I'm in my underwear?" She smirked as she pulled away from him.

"What? I'm hugging you because you're my best friend ... it ain't my problem if you just happen to be standin' in your underwear now is it?"


End file.
